Healthy Hormone Balance Strategies

Can Nutrition and Essential Oils Help Balance Your Hormones?

You know that your body is full of hormones, but do you completely understand what they are and why they’re important?

Hormones are our body’s chemical messengers. They are created by our endocrine glands and the travel through the bloodstream. The reason why hormones are so essential is because they regulate every cell, tissue and organ in our body.

Hormone Balance

Hormones have the power to impact so much of your health. We all know that hormones are a significant part of our sex drive and reproductive system. But it’s important to remember that hormones have tremendous affect on your mood, weight, digestive system, as well as growth in children.

Endocrine Disruptors

In young children, endocrine disruptors have been linked to tumors, birth defects and other developmental disorders. In older children, they can lead to behavioral issues. And in adults, they can interfere with reproduction, increase cancer risk, and disturb the nervous and immune system.

Think of it this way – if you don’t provide your body with the nutrients it needs, it will not be able to produce and maintain hormones. And this is a big reason why those fat-free diets are so bad for you. Healthy fats, including saturated fats and cholesterol, are needed in the production and balance of hormones. Fats are important building blocks of cell membranes and healthy cells equal healthy hormones. Did you know your brain is 60% fat? So not only is healthy fat needed for hormone balance, you need it for brain and mood balance.

Keep in mind that there are lots of foods you’ll want to stay away from. The following foods wreak havoc on your hormones:

Artificial sweeteners – our bodies do know how to treat sugar in the body (it’s too much that’s the real problem). But when you consume artificial sweeteners, your body gets confused and still releases insulin, but doesn’t release the hormone it needs to control blood sugar levels (GLP-1).

Processed foods – your body knows when you eat real food and when you eat processed foods. And hormones like serotonin, dopamine, insulin, and cortisol are all affected when they don’t get the vitamins, minerals and antioxidants they need.

Soy – I don’t hide the fact that I am not a fan of soy. First is the fact that soy is a GMO (genetically modified organism), but also it contains phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens can mimic real estrogen, which impacts the thyroid (one of the glands that controls our hormones).

Sandalwood – not only does sandalwood have an amazing scent, it can do wonders for enhancing the libido of men and women. It accomplishes this by balancing testosterone levels in both men and women.

Lavender – one of my favorite and most versatile essential oils, lavender is a must have. Lavender has been shown to reduce stress and help you sleep. Using this oil can also relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression. Remember, these are all signs of unbalanced hormones.

Essential Oil Protocol For Hormone Balance

My recommendation for how to use essential oils to balance your hormones:

Put 15 drops of clary sage, 15 drops of thyme, 10 drops of sandalwood and 10 drops of lavender into an essential oil roller bottle (like these from Amazon here).

Leann is a Board Certified Holistic Health Practitioner, holding a Master’s degree from Drake University and a Bachelor of Science from Upper Iowa University. Leann is accredited by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners. And she is an award winning author of 2 books “How to Get Your Kids to Beg for Veggies” and “100 Ways to Lose Weight”.

Born and raised as an Iowa farm girl, she moved to Texas in 1998 where she lives with her husband and 2 kids.